Microsoft plans to expand internet reach in rural India

An ambitious pilot project to take the internet to every house in rural India through the existing unused spectrum has finally begun to take shape. Eight institutes, including the International Institute of Information Technology-Bangalore (IIIT-B), are working on several experiments.Chethan Kumar | TNN | April 29, 2016, 12:54 IST

BENGALURU: An ambitious pilot project to take the internet to every house in rural India through the existing unused spectrum has finally begun to take shape. Eight institutes, including the International Institute of Information Technology-Bangalore (IIIT-B), are working on several experiments.

The IIIT-B is playing a crucial role of developing prototypes and checking if use of such frequencies can create interference with other transmission. In the second week of March, the government cleared decks for use of 127 Mhz of spectrum by eight institutes, including IIIT-B, which are working on last-mile connectivity of internet from gram panchayats to houses using TV White Spaces (TVWS) technology.

The project, which will use frequency band 470-582 Mhz, will be tested in several villages of six states. Television networks leave gaps between channels for buffering and this space (TVWS) is similar to what is used for 4G which can be used to deliver broadband internet. Professor Debabrata Das of IIIT-B, who is working on the project with colleague Prof Jyotsna Bapat, said: "We had received Rs 20 lakh from Microsoft. The tests use frequencies in Bengaluru urban and rural areas."

The project, proposed by Microsoft during the visit of its CEO Satya Nadella, is part of the company's global endeavour. "Over half the people on earth can't go online. More than 4 billion are not connected to internet, either because there's no infrastructure or its not affordable. There's tremendous opportunity that technology like TVWS can help create," the company website says.